Senior Denzel Primus-Devonish hopes to leave a lasting legacy with his alma-mater, as he hopes to help lead the team to the NCAA Tournament and more.

“I think that the whole basketball staff has done a great job of assembling the team for this season, and ultimately our goal is to make it to the NCAA Tournament,” said Primus-Devonish, a global marketing major from Riverdale, Maryland. “I also want us to be one of the top teams in our conference.”

Being the co-captain for the basketball team, Primus-Devonish looks forward to the new season and hopes to serve the title well.

“I am honored to be named co-captain, and I understand that being captain means that you need to be a leader both on and off the court,” said Primus-Devonish, who was named to the Northeast-10 Conference Third Team Selection for the 2011-2012 season.

Assistant Coach Kevin Clark believes that Primus-Devonish has excelled as a player on the team over his years here at Pace.

“Denzel has been a huge asset for Pace University, both on and off the court” Clark said.  “He has excelled as a four year star on the basketball team and has continuously grown in the classroom. Denzel looks to improve every day and helps lead our team with his experience, which is everything we look for in our captain.”

Primus-Devonish has accumulated several top accolades throughout his career at Pace, including being named to the Northeast-10 Conference Weekly Honor Roll six times between the years 2011 and 2013 and being named to the Northeast-10 Conference All-Rookie Team for 2010-2011, among other things.

Having been at Pace his whole college career, Primus-Devonish has seen many changes go on within the department, as well as himself as a player.

“Recently there have been a lot of changes going on, but they have all been for the better,” Primus-Devonish said. “It’s really gotten better since they hired the new Athletic Director. They are really trying to make it more like a Division I school.”

Having played in all 26 games in the 2012-2013 season, as well as all 27 games for the 2011-2012 season, Primus-Devonish has had plenty of opportunities to improve as a player. (pacesettersathletics.com)

­ “I think personally I have also seen changes in myself as a player,” said Primus-Devonish, who started playing basketball when he was nine years old, mostly because all of his friends started playing as well. “It’s been a huge learning curve, and I am still learning every day.”

Over the past three seasons at Pace, Primus-Devonish has been one of the top five leaders in various categories in the NE-10, including third leading scorer with 12.8 PPG in 2012-2013, as well as being fourth in assists with an average of 4.85 assists per game in 2010-2011, allowing his goal to seem much more reachable. (pacesettersathletics.com)

“I am always looking to be more successful, to work harder, and to get better each day. One of my goals is to be recognized as one of the top point guards in the league,” Primus-Devonish said.

Primus-Devonish feels like the road to success can be challenging, but with new recruits brought in this season, along with a new coach, he has high hopes for this upcoming season.

“I think that we have a really good chemistry going on,” Primus-Devonish said. “The new recruits came in at around late August, so we’ve had about two months together, but we’ve gotten to know each other and understand each other as players and I think that we mesh really well.”

With plenty of practices under their belts, a strong team unit is certainly what Primus-Devonish believes to be the key to success.

“We know how to play together, and I think that we have a certain confidence and belief in our abilities that will help us be successful,” Primus-Devonish said.